


Tales From a Certain Mafia

by StripesnBooks



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Bone Tibia Wild, F/M, Malencha's MAfia au, Self Insert
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-16
Updated: 2019-01-14
Packaged: 2019-08-03 03:33:44
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,576
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16318340
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StripesnBooks/pseuds/StripesnBooks
Summary: Stories from Malencha's mafia rp au, centered around my character Stripes, a Spider monster.





	1. Dust Jacket

Stripes marched into work. It didn’t feel right; she was missing too many spiders to feel comfortable. Lonely. Ringing open the shop, she started to feel better as her larger spider workers greeted her. Right. There were plenty of them here, a mix of spider monsters and surface spiders she had befriended.This was fine. She went into the back, rearranging headless mannequins in the windows, showcasing her abilities to work with all shapes and sizes. Some of the smaller spiders, noticing her mood, climbed onto her, the little pitter of tiny feet on her skin calming her down. After the whole debacle at the red light district with Beastie, she was emotionally exhausted, even if she had gotten a full night’s sleep.

 

“Damn skeletons…” she muttered to herself.

 

There was a ringing at the doorbell, and she quickly straightened her appearance. Turning, to greet them, she began, “Welcome dearies! How can I…” her words faded out.

 

Skeletons. Three damn skeletons had entered her establishment. The first one she noticed was a towering lanky skeleton in a fur lined trench coat, with a fedora tilted over his face, twirling something between his fingers. The next was loudly complaining about something, a short skeleton brassed in a black pinstripe suit and an all around exceptional outfit, who did not seem to be in need of your services. The former as well, didn’t seem to put much thought into his appearance. No, she had little doubt that it was the third skeleton who they were here for. The two before stuck close together, following the pattern everyone had described, but their movements and formation made it almost feel like they were chaperoning him.

 

“YOU! WE REQUIRE NEW ACCOUTREMENTS FOR OUR COMPANION!” The small one commanded.

 

Stripes tried to calm her rising anger; she had to be a professional now. Plus, it wasn’t well known that her shop was linked to Boss Mal, and only the patrons of Cap’s bar really had an idea how close she was to the gang. She smiled sweetly, biting back a number of choice words. “Of course, dearie.” two pairs of eyes flicked to the third skeleton. He was taller than her, but far shorter than the lanky skeleton now looking at her necklace section. He wore a simple duster, and when he looked up one eye light was red, while the left one was blue ringed with red. That was… different. When he looked up at her, every hair on her body stood on edge. He seemed to chuckle.

 

“HE NEED TO BE OUTFITTED WITH A PROPER SUIT, FOR STARTERS!” The loud one said, interrupting her reverie. “SLACKS AS WELL, AND DO YOU DO SHOES?”  


“I don’t make shoes, but i can fix up older pairs or re-size some,” Stripes said.

 

The small one nodded. “THEN SIMPLY A SUIT, SLACKS, AND SHIRTS FOR NOW!”

 

From various pockets, Stripes pulled out a clipboard, measuring tape, and several swatches of fabric in varying colors and textures. She held out the swatches to the unsettling one. “Pick what you like, dearie.” She turned back to the loud one, as he seemed to be in charge of this activity. The tall one was staying close to the loud one, but his gaze kept going back towards the jewelry for some reason. He didn’t seem to be wearing any jewelry, so maybe a lady friend? Her eyes narrowed as he mind flashed back to the gang’s interaction with skeletons. He matched the descriptions of a couple, but she couldn’t be sure, for now. “Can I have some names for the order, dearie? And a list of what you would like prepared once I get his measurements.”

 

He snatched the notepad from her hand, writing down the required clothes. “YOU MAY CALL ME BLACK. MY BROTHER, MUTT, AND THIS IS… DUST.” She chittered in irritation, unused to people snatching things from her, but noted their names. As she waited for the return of her item, Mutt wandered up.

 

Stripes looked up at him, and he held a delicate gold pendant in from of her face. It was one of her woven wire pieces. “... how much?”

 

“Ah.” she told him, and he passed her the gold, pocketing the item. Black then handed her back the list, and Stripes took Dust into the back room.

 

Dust still had the swatches of fabric, but didn’t return them as he began taking off his outer layers for Stripes to measure him properly. “So, dearie,” she chatted, “why are you getting so many new suits?”

 

“well, been working with a lot of… antiques. they get pretty… dusty.” he kept flipping through the fabric options. “wouldn’t come out. don’t go out in public much, but boss insisted i have ‘proper’ clothes. and since my brother agrees… i decided to go along with it.”

 

“Clothes can really boost confidence. Help one to look a certain way.” as a part time spy, Stripes was very familiar with what a proper outfit could do. “Your boss run an antique shop?” She already knew he had to be part of the skeleton gang, and had a hunch that the lanky one was Roxas’s stalker.

 

“heh. something like that. lots of real classic pieces. sometimes it feels like he just likes collecting sets.” He held out his arms, but stayed casually slumped over. She tried to use her arms to straighten him up, but he grabbed her wrists. “... i’d prefer if you didn’t touch me.”

 

Stripes’ face froze, still wearing the overly-bright customer smile. “I apologize, but i need you to stand up straight to get your proper measurements.” She hid her irritation well.

 

He squeezed. “...you’re fuzzy.”

 

“... Yes. will you please let go so I can finish getting your measurements?”

 

He stroked her short purple fur, but then dropped her arms. “yeah, sure.” he shrugged, grinning at her.

 

Eyes narrowed and more on guard, she finished the measurements as quickly as she could. But now he was staring at her and mumbling under his breath. She didn’t like it one bit.

 

“ARE YOU DONE BACK THERE YET?” Came the voice of Black. He sounded a bit… on edge.

 

Stripes finished up and they both came back to the front. “Yes dearie, all done.” the two others immediately began herding Dusty away from her. “I’ll have it done before next week, so come by then to try them on and fix up any little fiddly bits.” tailoring the skeletons in their gang had taught her that those particular body types always needed a little touching up at the end.

 

Black nodded, before turning to Dusty. “FOR STARS SAKE, STOP TALKING TO YOURSELF! AND MUTT WILL YOU KEEP YOUR HEAD OUT OF THE CLOUDS!”

 

Mutt, who had been eyeing some of the dresses, immediately snapped his attention back to Black. “sorry, m’lord…”

 

The group was finally leaving. Part of the spider woman was sad that she didn’t get any more information out of them, but mostly she was just glad they were leaving. But before they exited, Dust turned around to grin at Stripes. He held up his hand, a spider grasped between his thumb and pointer finger. Her eyes widened. Making sure to keep his body between his hand and his escorts as they walked away, he crushed the little creature, dust scattering onto the floor and collecting on his hand. He winked at Stripes, and then they were out the door. She just stood there in shock. Was he… threatening her? Why?!

 

She could vaguely hear the loud one as they walked away. “CAN YOU NOT GO ONE DAY WITHOUT DUSTING SOMEONE?”

 

Stripes growled, fangs clicking rapidly. She was going to kill him.


	2. Take What You Want

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the mafia had a reset a while ago, and the previous work is no longer canon. gonna have to write a new thing another time.
> 
> but heres how Stripes got into this mafia! feat. Crusnikroxas and their character as well!

Life was not for quitters. You gotta work for everything you got in life. That’s what Stripes learned the moment she was old enough to hit the streets. Spider families can be quite large, and so seventh to hatch from a nest of fifteen meant she quickly learned how to re-use what they had and search the garbage for what they didn't. Her family might have been content to get by on what came their way, but Stripes wanted to do better than that.

 

Her first job was at Muffet’s. The spider lady had really made a name for herself, and her cafe was famous. Or infamous. Depended on who you asked. She started with waiting tables, and eventually moved into the kitchen on occasion. Muffet wasn’t a bad boss, really the wages were fair. She was never rude or snappy to the workers, either.

 

But Stripes didn’t want to stay working in a bakery. Of course she could talk to spiders and a few other arachnids, but working at Muffet’s got her thinking. Why not have some of the many spiders help her with her  _ other _ job? When she went home to her tiny apartment, she worked on dresses, suits, and all manner or jewelry and finery for humans and monsters. She was waiting, saving enough to start her own business.

 

So she took some of the spiders home with her one day. She asked for their help, and they agreed. It cut her project times in half, and she was able to start selling pieces to monsters who found it hard to get properly fitted clothes.

 

“Dearie, we need to talk,” Muffet’s icy tone cut through her right as Stripes stepped in the door for work.

 

“Of course,” she said, smiling sweetly back. She was guided to the back, where hordes of spiders swarmed the place. More than usual. “Is something wrong?”

 

“Yes. you see, these spiders are under my employ. I feed them, house them, give them safe places for breeding, digestion, and sleeping.” Muffet’s five eyes narrowed. “And in exchange, they work for  _ me _ . Not anyone else.”

 

“Oh come now,” Stripes argued, “I could house some, i could feed them!”

 

“ _ Then find your own _ . I worked hard to gather these followers and i will not have some young thing barely out of  _ stripes _ kidnapping my workers. Today if you last day. You’ll be fine, they’ve told me of your success in other fields.”

 

Stripes bit down her anger and frustration. Her only solace was that, at the end of the day, a few spider monsters decided they’d rather sew than bake, and came with her when she left. It was comforting to feel them crawl onto her arms as they walked out into the warm summer night.

 

It turned out that recruiting spiders was not so easy. First off, one has to find spiders. Then, she had to make sure they weren’t working for Muffet already. It surprised her how many spies Muffet had scattered around her territory. But as she moved further from the cafe, she found more and more willinging to help her in exchange for safety and food. And then, finally, she was able to purchase her shop, with a little apartment on top. Stripes wasted little time in setting up, and had a pleasantly surprising amount of business right away. However, she began to notice that certain customers fit a certain… type. She had heard that this part of town was run by a ruthless gang run by a human woman. Bone Tibia Wild. the name sounded like a joke, but the members were anything but. So it was only a matter of time before they noticed her shop.

 

The blonde woman walked in, back straight, eyes cold as ice. "....so, you're Stripes, eh?"

 

She turned to face the new customer. "Indeed dearie, what can I get for you?"

 

She chuckled darkly, tapping her heels. "So, nice place.  _ New  _ place." Her cold eyes hardened all the more. "....let's cut to that chase. You know what area you're in, right?"

 

Stripes’ eight eyes narrowed. "...I assume you're not just referring to the physical locale?"

 

Another dark chuckle. “Ok, I'll be more specific. You know  _ who's _ area you're in, right?”

 

Her voice went icy, her customer smile plastered onto her face, faker than before. “Why yes. As a matter of fact i do.” it was  _ her  _ damn shop,  _ her  _ damn area! And she had worked her ass off to get here!

 

The woman suddenly smiled - and it was not a nice smile. Not a nice smile at all. "Perfect. Then I assume you know why I'm here?"

 

"It's been barely a month," she hissed, smile never wavering despite her tone, "but how much is it?"

 

Her smile dropped. "...hey, I don't make the rules spidey, I just collect. Or I  _ collect _ , if you know what I'm saying." Her grin returned as she uttered the price.

 

“Well then,” hse replied in a sickly sweet tone, “I suppose i’ll have something for you by the end of the month.” oh, she’d have  _ something  _ all right.

 

Roxas stopped and merely stared for a moment - a look that sent shivers down Stripes' spine. "....make sure that you do." And with that, she stalked out.....before poking her head back in, smile back in full force. "...lovely stuff, by the way. Might have yourself a customer, here." With a chortle, she left.

 

When the woman left, Stripes was seething. True, it wasn’t as much as some other gangs would charge, but she had earned that damn money! Well, she knew just how to keep it. She stomped up the stairs to where everywhere but the bathroom and kitchen were covered with the webs of millions of spiders of all species. “Who’s small and fast?” she asked, wiping building venom from her fangs. Ugh. it felt like she was drooling when that happened. A group of spiders gathered, and she gave them the instructions.

 

If she needed to… branch out from mere clothes and accessories, she could adapt. And by the end of the month, she had what she needed.

 

The woman, Roxas, she had learned the name was, came back in, still all business. “It’s the end of the month.”

 

“It is indeed, dearie.” Stripes smiled sweetly, glad there were no customers around. “But i’m afraid I won’t be making the payment just yet.” She could see the woman tense, possibly readying an attack, but she held out a pair of hands in a placating manner. “Please, dearie, I just wish to speak with your boss. I have some… information she might find interesting.”

 

It took a lot of negotiating before Boss Mal herself was in Stripes’ little shop. With bodyguards.

 

“Welcome dearies!” It was a bit frightening, but Stripes pushed through that feeling. “Well, here’s what I wanted to show you.” She opened a file, spreading out the contents. 

 

Malenchka sauntered up. “It had better be good-” her eyes widened as she took in the pictures, receipts, snippets of conversations from people who should’ve kept their damn mouths shut. “What. the hell. Is this.” she growled, looking back up at the now slightly smug businesswoman.

 

Well, that was more of a rush than she’d expected. “Well, you see, i wanted to negotiate a lower price in regards to the protection fees. I man, i will need less protection anyway; as you can see i am skilled in… protecting myself, fuhuhu.”

 

Mal stood back up tall, the anger giving way to amusement. She could have the spider dusted then and there if she wanted but… had to appreciate being able to find out… this, of all things. “I’ll do you one better. How about a side job in exchange for a much lower rate?”

 

Who knew she’d get into one of the strongest mafias in the city. Who knew she’d come to love the family, want to protect them more than her own life. Who knew how this new contract would change her. Stripes didn’t.

 

“That sounds lovely, dearie!”


	3. Cobwebs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> How Dust first found Stripes, post-reset

Collecting information and spying for the gang wasn’t usually a hard job. Most of the time her spiders did the work, watching and listening. But sometimes, she went undercover. She liked it, it was fun, pretending to be someone else. And she was very good at not breaking character.

 

This time she was supposed to infiltrate a certain establishment that was thought to be selling on family territory. Normally Roxas would be here to take someone out, but Stripes was going in first to confirm and find out who exactly was involved.

 

“So, you want the cheap stuff, or the good stuff?” The monster before her asked. He was a large furry creature resembling a minotaur.

 

Stripes blinked demurely, half-lidding her eyes. “Only the best.”

 

He took out a small bag, showing her the substance inside. “Follow me then,” he said with a cheeky grin. “I know how to show you a good time.”

 

She sighed. Looks like she’d have to do him to keep her cover. Oh well, at least he wasn’t bad looking. She followed him to the room.

 

* * *

  
  


Dust snuck through the shadows to the building. He could hear talking and laughing at this restaurant, the sounds of a busy night. Good. he could slip through all those people unnoticed. He entered easily, using his speed to move around and have as few people as possible even look at him. He easily made his way to the back rooms, hiding in the shadows. This guy hadn’t paid his protection fees in too long, so it seemed people needed to be reminded that was simply not acceptable. Dust used his brother to peek into the rooms as they went to locate the target. Finally, they found him. But he was with someone. Dust looked around and, spotting a large vent, decided to just watch until it was safe to make a move.

  
  
“Brother, maybe we should help her?” Papyrus asked hesitantly.

 

“nah.” Dust shook his head. “not my business.” He heaved himself into the vent, and crawled until he was above the room, with a pretty good view to what was happening inside. The target was there, with a spider monster who was surrounded by some kind of pitchfork-themed bullet pattern. Dust did a quick check on them both. The guy had taken maybe a couple hits, and his HP was barely affected. The spider woman, however… she had a fair amount of HP, but almost all of it was gone. Several wounds were leaking dust, and her fancy clothes were barely clinging to her form. Not a bad view.

 

“Are- are you sure we shouldn’t do something?” Papyrus said, his two disconnected gloved hands wringing together nervously.

 

* * *

  
  


Stripes had… miscalculated. When he brought her to the back, he had attempted to pin her down and restrain her, and not in the fun way. It seemed someone might be doing some monster trafficking as well. And worse, he had good eyes, killing or stopping every spider that tried to get out and set up her trap webbing. She dodged another pitchfork, but one got her from behind, knocking her health down again. She shot some webbing at his hand in an attempt to slow him down and maybe incapacitate him, but he brought out a physical knife and easily cut through it.

 

“Your HP is super low gurlie,” the minotaur said haughtily. “I don't wanna dust you. Just come in nice and easy.”

 

Stripes smiled. “You see, i’d love to, but I have a shop to run.” she was not in good shape. Stripes had managed to send out a request for backup, but she didn’t know how long that would take. But she wouldn’t go down here, even if her HP was dangerously low, below five. She was filled with determination. She dodged another round of attacks, tried to send out spiders, and hissed angrily when they were all dusted.

 

* * *

  
  


Dust blinked. That spider… he looked closer, judging her soul. It was… red. A bright, pulsing  _ red _ . His eye lights went out. Monsters weren’t supposed to have red souls. Maybe he’d do them both a favor and kill the girl right now. But something flashed in the back of his head, memories of melting, of screaming, of… no. he wouldn’t risk... that. He would have to break her, first. If there was no determination, then it’d be fine. Heh. plus, it just sounded fun. What would it take to break this monster, he wondered? He’d have to watch her and find out. He watched as another attack hit her and her HP went down to… 0.5. That was  _ unnatural _ .

 

* * *

  
  


Stripes was hit by another attack, and it hurt so bad… but she refused to go down here. She held on, facing down the minotaur- until her opponent fell to the ground, screaming and clutching a bleeding leg wound. It had been so sudden, she didn’t see what hit him, but she took the opportunity to quickly wrap him up in webbing. Things went deeper than she had expected, so they’d have to do some interrogation of this asshole. Stripes knew just who to take him to. Well… she’d have to heal up first. She got up, brushing herself off, but then her captive screamed. Her head snapped to the side, eight eyes widening as her webbing fell to the floor around a pile of dust.

 

What.

 

What?!

 

Did he take a cyanide pill or something?! Stripes cursed. She’d be going home empty handed. She tended her wounds as best she could, before sneaking out and taking the back way home. This would sure be something to report.


	4. Therapy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dust goes to therapy
> 
> From Malenchka's mafia au rp

Dust didn’t like therapists. When he got to this place, after a couple times of him getting… “out of hand”, they assigned him to weekly therapy. They wanted it to calm him down, cull his urges, and help him be better with his social skills.

 

It didn’t go well.

 

While most of the mafia didn’t say much about it, the therapists wanted him to get rid of his brother. The first time he went in, he was bored enough to answer their questions, humor them, mess with them a little. But when he stopped to talk to his brother, they asked who he was talking to. He told them. They told him it wasn’t real. They told him Papyrus wasn’t there.

 

The first one didn’t last an hour, and Boss complained about him dusting a perfectly good therapist. Really chewed him out. He didn’t care.

 

The second time he was a lot more guarded. More frustrated going in the first place. Paps was the only thing keeping him calmed down. The second therapist didn’t last ten minutes. But then Boss got really upset, threatened to take away privileges. And dust very much valued his ability to leave the mansion. He did not want to be locked up. 

 

So the third therapist survived a session. Dust said very little besides cracking a few jokes and talking about his favorite magic bullet patterns. They seemed fine with that. This time he didn’t talk to Papyrus in front of them. The second session was just the therapist trying to “get to know him”. They played games. Talked about the news, the nearby stores, their favorite foods. It was a little boring, but not bad. He went to a few more sessions. He still had to be forcibly brought there, never going willingly. But once he was there, he didn’t teleport out. He let the therapist talk, and he talked too. But, then came the day he talked to Paps in front of him.

 

“Who are you talking to?” the therapist asked.

 

“...no one,” he said, looking to the side where his brother’s face looked apologetically at him. They had agreed not to talk during therapy, but Papyrus had just been so excited by the cover of the magazine the therapist brought in.

 

The therapist frowned. “Look, this is a safe space. You can tell me anything you want here.”

 

Dust raised a brow bone. “oh really?”

 

“Yes, of course.” they looked concerned. “I’m legally not allowed to tell anyone what we talk about here. Your activities, and issues you want to bring up, even your favorite food. I can’t talk.” they mimed zipping their lips.

 

Dust rolled his eyelights. Most of the others had said the same thing at the beginning. But that wasn’t what he was worried about. Still. “what if i was gonna kill someone?” he said, leaning forward to stare the therapist down.

 

“Well, normally that would be cause to report you. Buuut… your boss pays me very well. I mean, interfering with your work life isn’t in my job description, and i doubt the police could catch you anyways.”

 

… “‘s my bro.”

 

“What about your brother?”

 

Dust sighed, looking at the doctor with tired eyes. “i’m talking to my brother. he’s here. as a ghost or some shit.”

 

They looked surprised. “You have a ghost brother? I didn’t know you were bringing anyone along to these sessions. Could you please ask him to become visible for me?”

 

Dust laid back. “not a ghost monster. like a wandering spirit or whatever. can’t go far from me, an’ only i can see him.”

 

“Ah. I see.” it was the beginning of the end. He should have known from that tone, but… he held onto… hope? Hope for what? Understanding? No. no one could understand him fully, and he didn’t want to. Friendship? Someone he could talk to, who didn’t know his past, who wouldn’t look at him like… “So, what does your brother say?”

 

“just stuff. He was looking at your magazine. he really likes that band on the cover.”

 

And so they talked about the band, and how they were winning several awards. The therapist even tried to talk to Papyrus a couple time, to the ghost’s joy, and Dust hesitantly translated. When he left, he wondered… what this meant. The next session, he didn’t struggle to go back. It went much like that last. The therapist was… not bad company. He started to find the sessions… fine. They were fine. Didn’t enjoy them, no, of course not. But in some ways, they were better than being back at the mansion, where no one liked him (for a reason, he could admit), and no one acknowledged Paps.

 

But then the day finally came.

 

“So Dust, has your brother ever… interacted with the outside world?”

 

Dust glanced at them. “no. like i said, he’s a spirit or something. dunno. don’t really understand it, or how it happened.”

 

“Did it ever happen to someone else? A family member coming back to haunt them?”

 

He shrugged. “not that i know of.”

 

“Dust, have you ever thought… that he’s not really there?”

 

...

 

The fourth therapist refused to see him.

 

And then Ebony went and opened his thing. Dust didn’t want to go. He didn’t give a shit about this therapy bullshittery. He wasn’t going to go. So he hid. Dust didn't know if anyone would be here this time of day. He was hiding in a corner, out of sight for someone who wasn't looking. Unfortunately, he figured someone might start looking soon. Well shit, sure enough, he could hear Classic from here, yelling for him. 

 

"paps, see anyone? no? well, we're safe for now then..." Dust began scanning where he might teleport to if he was found. He stayed still and quiet, blending in with the shadows of the little corner. _okay, if they find me, move to the theatre first. it’s dark enough. if that doesn't work, the lake is far. avoid my room._ He waited there a while, getting a little nervous. He glanced at his watch. Damn, if he wanted to avoid this he'd have to stay free for another hour. His magic itched; his agitation made it restless. His soul craved something to settle it, to satisfy it. But he didn't have time. If he left and did something, they’d find him immediately. Here his magic was less noticeable.

 

Classic popped into the garden, sliding a bit on the grass as he started his search. "come out dust! if i have to go to therapy so do you!!" Classic growled, stretching his magic out to try to find the crazy skeleton.

 

_ oh shit _ okay, okay, this is fine. he hadn't seen him yet.... fuck, he wish he knew where they’d already looked. He waited a few more seconds, before porting to the theatre.

 

Classic stopped, feeling the residual magic. "YA FUCKIN ASS GET BACK HERE!!!!!" Classic ported, trying to keep up with the magical residue.

 

The theatre was pleasantly dark, and he nestled himself on the ground between a few rows of chairs. Ha. Maybe he could last a while here. Some dumb movie was playing. Sometimes Red had good taste, sometimes he put on dumb romance shit. He was starting to regret sitting here as the couple on screen argued about something dumb involving boats.

 

And suddenly Classic ported behind Dust, gripping onto the others shoulder so he couldn't port without taking him with him. "surprise motherfucker."

 

_ FUCK. _ Dust immediately teleported them over the lake.   
  


"YA FU-" Classic got out before being ported.

 

They appeared over the lake, several yards from the edge. Dust hadn't exactly meant to do it, per se. He had just been so prepared to come here that as soon as Classic spoke, it was his first reaction. And now they were falling into the chilled waters, and he could only hope he could shake him off.    
  


Classic's hold loosened, but he tried to keep his grip. "you are going to the damn appointment dust!!"

 

"fuck you!" he growled as the water soaked his jacket, struggling to get free as they sunk to the bottom. He had no idea how deep it was here, but it seemed like it would go over his head.

 

"not quite into that ya crazy, but if everyone else has to go so...do...you!" Classic growled, fighting to get them to the shore.

 

Captain heard the yelling and ran out to the lake. He shook his head as he noticed the splashes in the water. He rushed up and waded over to the two skeletons. 

 

“THIS IS HARDLY THE TIME FOR A SWIM!”Captain easily hefted the tangled skeletons out of the water before separating them. He tucked Dust securely under his arm before tossing his brother over his shoulder. He let out a small tsk, “I HOPE YOU ARE HAPPY WITH YOURSELF! NOW WE HAVE TO GO TO YOUR APPOINTMENT IN SOGGY CLOTHES!”

 

Classic slumped in his brothers grip. Damn he was tired. He don't get paid enough. "sorry bro..." he didn't even have energy to pun, damn what a day.

 

Dust growled and struggled, but Captain was tough. And he wasn't about to try any attacks on him. "put me down you- you over enthusiastic fucker!"

 

Captain tightened his hold on Dust slightly before looking down at him, “WATCH YOUR LANGUAGE, PLEASE.” He looked over at his brother, “IT IS ALRIGHT! I DON’T WANT TO ENCOURAGE YOUR BAD HABITS, BUT YOU LOOK LIKE YOU NEED SOME SLEEP.” He grinned, “JUST MAKE SURE TO CHANGE OUT OF THOSE CLOTHES FIRST!” He began back towards the mansion, both skeletons in hand.    
  


"sure bro...whatever ya say..." Classic started to nap while being held, dreams of being back in Snowdin being carried just like this filling his mind.

 

Dust did not watch his language, continuing to struggle and curse.

 

Captain stopped in the main hall before leaving to take Dust to his appointment. He jostled Classic as gently as he could, “ARE YOU COMING WITH, OR WOULD YOU PREFER TO BE LEFT HERE?”

 

Classic woke from his pleasant dream to his brothers shaking. He has been having more of them lately, this was the first that didn’t involve her in awhile though. He yawned softly. "i trust ya to keep a socket on him bro, i'm gonna nap, get out of the wet clothes." he groaned as he slipped out of his brothers grip. "make sure ya take the drowned cat there all the way there, the therapist is gonna be pissy he’s late." Classic chuckled.

 

Dust hung limply, simply grumbling. Seemed he was out of energy for now.

 

“I WILL BE SURE TO KEEP AN EYE SOCKET ON HIM!” Captain grinned as he headed for the door, “WE ARE OFF!” He announced before slamming the door behind him.

 

Upon arrival to Ebony’s new establishment, Mental Stitches, Captain practically kicked open the door. “I AM VERY SORRY THAT WE ARE LATE!” He shifted Dust so that the smaller skeleton was being held out in front of him. He grinned at Ebony, “WHERE WOULD YOU LIKE FOR ME TO PUT HIM?”

 

Dolly and Lord sat back in the waiting room, but looked over to see what all the ruckus was.

 

Ebony had just walked back in from dealing with asinine bullshit when Captain came in lugging Dust. Fuck, he almost forgot about the mandated sessions for the dustpan.

 

"dunno cap, looks like he has other people to get to. my time is up, right?" Dust said hopefully.

 

“Oh no we can wait!” Lord chirped sweetly. Next to him Dolly nodded in agreement, her shit eating grin reminiscent of a smug sibling getting revenge.

 

Ebony looked to Lord and Dolly. "I know you set up an appointment yesterday, but Boss's orders supersede schedule. This is going to take a while. I will see you first thing in the morning to make up for it." Then he turned to Dust. "Not a chance. Captain, put him on the couch in my office."

 

The two snickered at the sad bastard. They held in their guffaws, apparently quite pleased at Dust’s suffering. Lord mumbled something about a damned feather duster, making Dolly chuckle. The smug skeleton gave one last glance before teleporting them away. Dust rolled his eyes, wondering what the consequences would be if he teleported away as soon as no one was touching him.

 

Captain gave Dust a deadpan stare before he smiled at him, “IT WON’T BE SO BAD! I THINK YOU ARE BLOWING THIS WAY OUT OF PROPORTION!” Plus, there was no chance he was letting Dust out of it after all of the work they had done to catch him. He nodded at Ebony and strode into the office before planting Dust onto the couch. “WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO STAY AROUND?” He didn’t take his hands off of Dust quite yet.

 

Ebony followed Captain and shut the door. "If you can keep what is said in here  _ in here _ then you may stay." He said as he moved his chair to sit squarely in front of Dust. "That means no telling Classic. Understood?"

 

"don't i have the right to refuse company or some shit?" Dust growled.

 

"Normally," Ebony summoned some string and fiddled with it in his right hand. "But I will make an exception if you don't swear on your brother's dust you won't teleport out." But it would make for a fun chase... Stars, how long had it been since he tracked someone down...

 

Captain glanced between the two of them quietly. He knew that he didn’t really have any say in whether he stayed or not, and he most certainly wasn’t going to demand to be somewhere where he wasn’t wanted.

 

_ well fuck, jump straight to the point, why don't ya. _ Dust grunted. "fine. i won't teleport out."

 

Ebony stared at Dust for a time, weighing pros and cons of giving him the benefit of the doubt...   
  
Came out even...   
  
"Captain," he said without breaking eye contact, "you may either go out in the lobby and wait for Dust or you may leave." He waited for Captain to comply.... And hoped this wouldn't bite him in his non-existent ass.

 

Captain nodded and slowly let go of dust. He took a step back and smiled at the both of them. “I TRUST THAT DUST CAN GET BACK HOME PERFECTLY WELL ON HIS OWN!”  Getting there was a whole other story entirely. He began backing up towards the door, “GOOD LUCK!” He spun around and made sure to shut the door behind him.    
  


Well, at least he have some time to  _ kill _ after this. He grinned at the thought.

 

Ebony waited until Captain's footsteps faded before speaking. "You probably already know whatever you say here stays here. So, what I want to know is what did you do to make Boss order you to therapy?"

 

Dust smiled. "was just bein’ myself."

 

"I'm sure," He said evenly. "But what did you  _ do _ to gain coming to see me?"

 

Dust sighed, knowing this particular back and forth could go all day. "you want a list? dusting and killing without permission, constantly, not always being around when i’m supposed to be working, not reporting my activities outside of missions, killing when i was only supposed to scare em or deliver messages, etc. guess its cuz of my LV." he shrugged, grinning at Ebony. Keeping up appearances.

 

"LV has nothing to do with your behavior." Yeesh, Dust was even harder to get through than Mutt. At least the mongrel had come in and started talking. "Look, I get you don't want to be here, so you're going to make it as hard as possible hoping I give up. I'm trying to give you a chance to make it easier on us both. Longer you act stubborn and play at being a badass, the more we will get to have these little heart-to-hearts. So cut the bullshit."

 

"you want it cut in half, or quartered?  _ you  _ could always make it easier by giving up. tell the boss we had a real bonding moment, that i'm a changed monster." he chuckled.

 

"Hmm... Let me think...  _ No. _ " Ebony folded his hands as he stared at Dust. "So let's actually try having a serious conversation. I remember watching you destroy everyone you loved in the name of protecting them. I think this behavior stems from that." He waited, knowing that subject was sensitive but not caring. Ebony was going to get through to him one way or another. "Or is it the spider you are so infatuated with? Or a combination of both?"

 

"hey. i saved them. i saved them. there was going to be a reset where the kid would..." paps was talking to him, trying to comfort him, but he ignored his brother. he knew better than to bring that up here and now. "the spider? she has the unfortunate aspect of reminding me of the kid. that's all. not an infatuation."

 

"Just like I saved all those countless SOULs when I destroyed all those timelines." There was no hint of emotion when he spoke. "You didn't  _ save _ anyone. You were scared then, and you're scared now. Of what? Hell if I know.... But I would like to." Ebony had a feeling he was being extremely blunt, but he had a feeling blunt force was going to be the only way he was going to get through to Dust.

 

"scared? ha. haha! no i'm not, not particularly. and hey. i had a plan."  _ at first. _ "i saved them. maybe you saved them too, from pitiful existence. heartbreak. homicidal children. or maybe we're both just incredibly fucked up. maybe i'm just like you. a glitch. an  _ error. _ " He leaned forward in the chair, grinning.

 

Had this been two years ago, Ebony would have taken control of Dust and made him off himself. A mercy some might call it. But he wasn't that person anymore.... For the most part. "Projection will get you nothing,  _ Sans. _ You want to bring out names? Heh, fine. Tell me: if Papyrus could speak for himself, would he say you  _ saved _ him? What about Toriel? Or Asgore? Or Grillby? What about them? They didn't ask you to take their choices away. They didn't ask for you to judge them undeserving of experiencing life and all its joy and hardships. You know what you did was wrong, so now you feel guilty. And that guilt makes you unpredictable."

 

Guilt. Was he guilty? He looked to Papyrus, floating nearby and looking at him with worried eyes. It was a rule. they didn't talk during therapy sessions. But Papyrus spoke anyway. Dust looked away, thinking on his brother's words. Did he need forgiveness? Did he seek it?   
  


...   
  


Nah.   
  


"well, i wasn’t unpredictable enough to escape classic..."

 

Ebony watched Dust look off into space, but watched his features closely. Papyrus must have said something judging by the thoughtful expression on his skull. "Classic pays attention and is extremely observant.  But we're getting off subject." He nodded to the space Dust had been staring at. "What did he say?"

 

"none of your business. how much time we got left?"

 

"As much as I feel like giving you." Ebony had all the time in the world. He wanted to make at least a  _ tiny _ bit of headway before being done. "Dust, I gave you the benefit of the doubt by asking Captain to leave. For whatever reason you came up with, you stayed even though you can teleport out. That tells me you still have integrity. I respect that and am willing to give you all the same freedoms and courtesies I do anyone else that walks into my office. Like I said in the beginning: I know you don't want to be here. You want to stop coming? You want to avoid Classic or Captain or anyone else of the Inner Circle bringing you in?  _ Talk. _ I am not your enemy." He reeled back his attack to regroup and see how Dust would react to being given the chance to open up on his own. Even if it was a little, it was more than he had at the moment.

 

"yeah, you're not my fuckin friend either. just an ally. 's what all of you are, allies. and i play by your rules so that i can have some semblance of freedom, so i can go out and scratch that itch whenever i need to. so don't try an’ play at being my friend,  _ error _ ."

 

"Being my friend is a privilege you haven't earned, Sans." He stated as fact. He was quiet a moment as he mulled over everything Dust had said... And didn't say... Wait… "Tell me about the kid."

 

"they sucked. the end."

 

"Heh, don't they all? But there's more there." He squinted his sockets. "Tell me more."

 

" _ n o _ ."

 

"Why?" He was onto something... "What was so bad about them? Or good?"

 

He could see it. Their laughter as they walked in the park, their smile as they shared nice cream, their eyes flashing red, their laughter as they dusted a vulkin in hotland, their smile as  _ they crushed his brother's skull beneath their feet _ ...   
  


" _ they lied. i killed them. end of story _ ."

 

Ebony allowed himself a small smile.  _ Finally… _ "Not really. But that's enough for today. Boss has you scheduled twice a week. Your next appointment isn't until next week since you missed the first one this week. Come on your own this time or  _ I _ will hunt you down. Understood?"

 

"yeah whatever. so i can go now?"

 

He waved dismissively at the dustpan as he moved to go to his desk and go over the notes his string and pen had been making during their talk.

 

And so Dust was gone with the wind.


	5. What is LOVE, Baby Don't Hurt Me pt 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A look into how Dust became who he is, from the mafia rp on Malenchka's server.

The first time the kid dropped down, They were obviously scared. Sans watched them as they walked through the snow, rubbing at their sweater-clad arms. When he spooked them at the bridge, he almost felt bad for how much they were trembling. But when he pranked them with the whoopee cushion, they calmed down considerably. They were even fun to hang out with, in a way. He would heed Tori’s request, and watch the kid. 

 

A human here was rare, and sometimes he would get these weird feelings of deja vu. He started to wonder if the timeline anomalies were because of this kid. So he was nice. Tried to help them out, even. He asked questions, but they didn’t really offer answers. Didn’t talk much at all, in fact. Hardly ever. But hey, some people weren’t big talkers, that was fine.

 

When he met them in the judgement hall, he looked at their soul, really looked, for the first time. And he saw that they had killed. They had an LV of 3. So he explained what that meant, and the kid looked properly horrified. He let them pass.

 

The second time the kid fell, Sans was confused. He woke up in bed, the calendar turned back, and no one seeming to remember the past few days. Then the kid came out of the ruins, and Sans wondered if maybe he had just had a prophetic dream or something. He went through the motions, kept an eye on the human, and tried to get some answers. The kid talked a little more this time around. Laughed a lot more. It made sans happy to hear more people laugh at his jokes. He knew they were bad, awful even, and previously only tori had laughed. But he couldn’t see Tori’s smile. It was nice to see it on this kid. The kid looked happier this time around. So much happier than the first time. He wondered if it was the same kid. Had it been a dream? He helped them through the underground, still experiencing those moments of deja vu fairly often. When they met in the judgement hall, the kid had an LV of one. Sans congratulated them, they had really helped a lot of monsters who were stuck in the same routine. Himself included. Helping them on their journey had been… kinda fun. He felt much better letting them see Asgore this time around. Maybe the human could get through to Asgore.

 

The third time Sans woke up, he wondered if he was going mad. He immediately ported to the Ruins, and waited for the human to show up. But they didn’t. He waited all day, until Papyrus found him and brought him home for dinner. The next day, Tori showed up at the door for their usual joke session, and Sans couldn’t help but ask.

 

“hey tori, you ever see a human?” He looked at the door, as if he could see the mystery woman on the other side if he stared hard enough.

 

There was a pause. “Why do you ask?”

 

He sighed, leaning against the door. “well, i keep having these… dreams? about a human kid who comes down here. I help them get through the underground, like i promised weeks ago, and they go to the capitol. then i wake up.”

 

“Well… perhaps you are simply subconsciously hoping for someone to care for besides your brother?”

 

“yeah. maybe.”

 

A few days later, the kid came out of the ruins. The kid from his dreams. Short brown hair, pink and blue sweater, same determined face.

 

“turn around. don’t you know how to greet a new pal?” Sans stared as the kid turned around, their face lit up in a bright smile, and almost immediately took his hand. They giggled as the whoopee cushion went off, but Sans didn’t release them. “hey, kid. weird question, but… do i know you?” The flash of fear in their eyes was almost too quick to catch. But they vehemently shook their head no. “...k.”

 

The human went through Papyrus’s puzzles pretty quickly, and went to his little brother in search of praise that they immediately received. Sans watched. In waterfall, they talked to that ghost, Napstablook, and spent time with the monster kid. When they reached Sans’s sentry post in hotland, they handed him a load of gold, bouncing and making grabby hands at his hot dogs. He snorted. “yeah, yeah, gimme a sec.” he handed them a hotdog, but they put it in their pocket and just asked for another. And another. And another. Until their pockets were full of hot dogs, hot cats, and ‘dogs. He chuckled. “kid, you can’t hold any more.” the made a pouty face and crossed their arms. “okay, fine, hold still.” and he put one on their head. They practically lit up, and so he ended up staking a ton of hot dogs on their head. The kid wobbled back and forth trying to balance them. Sans was maybe using blue magic to help a little. “heh, gettin a little a _ head _ of yourself there kid. maybe you should  _ head _ towards your destination already.” the human took a few steps, and Sans released his magic, letting the food come tumbling down. “ah, looking like you shoulda brought an umbrella, it’s raining  _ cats and dogs _ .” Sans smiled as the kid doubled over laughing. They waved and headed off. And then came that sense of deja vu.

 

The kid took longer this time, but when they got to the judgement hall, they stood proudly, staring down at Sans with a wide smile. He gave his speech on LOVE and love, and by the end he was smiling back with a real smile. And thent he kid ran up and hugged him. He stared for a minute, before loosely wrapping his arms around them. “...you’ve heard all this before, haven’t you kid?” he felt them nod into his shoulder. “so why is this repeating? Are you messing up the timeline?”

 

The human pulled away, and shook their head, brown bob swaying to and fro. Then they opened their mouth and spoke their longest sentence yet in a hoarse, quiet voice. “I’m going to save you all.” Sans’s eye widened in surprise, and the human ran past him to Asgore. What did the kid mean, save them all? Were they going to… Stars! Sans turned , about to run after them, when someone ran past him. Several someones. He blinked, then ran after them… And then he woke up. Not in bed, but in a dark room near the barrier… except the barrier wasn’t there. And the kid was there, passed out on the floor. A goat woman was already over them, and sans quickly joined them as the human child woke up. They had done it. They had broken the barrier.

 

“You saved us, child,” came Asgore’s deep voice. “What… is your name?”

 

And, in the quietest voice, they told the gathered monsters their name.

 

Sans snorted. “really? heh, what kind of a name is frisk?” a good name, he thought. A name that brought them all together.

 

He started babysitting for Tori. Frisk was about ten, still a kid in stripes. And this gave the opportunity for Sans to ask some questions. He was already learning human sign language, and it came to him easily, to the point where he became more fluent than Toriel. And it was after the first few months on the surface that he finally brought it up. “hey frisk, we need to talk. About the timeline stuff.” Frisk looked up from their homework worry plain on their face. “hey no, i’m not mad, we just need to talk about it. can you… still do it?”

 

They made a see-saw motion with their hands, before signing, “it would take us back to the beginning. I’m sorry i did it, no one else seemed to notice, and i knew i could save everyone!”

 

Sans held up his hands in surrender. “i’m not mad! but, uh, you’re not gonna… do it again, right? now that we’re all safe?” well, mostly safe. There were still issues, and racism, but it was better than being trapped underground. Frisk shook their head. “promise?” with a decisive nod, Frisk held out their pinky. Sans took it in his own.

 

They spent every holiday together. Most weekends. Toriel invited the skeleton brothers more often than she did her ex-husband. Papyrus was enrolled in high school, and soon Frisk was in middle school. Sans helped them both with their homework (not that Papyrus needed much help, he excelled in most classes). In their second year of high school, Frisk confessed to Sans. he turned them down, and he wasn’t invited to their house for a few weeks. But soon it was back to normal. Frisk graduate high school with honors, and went on to college on several scholarships. They wanted to live in dorms, and Toriel tearily agreed.

 

“maybe i should go back to college too…” Sans mused with a grin as he ‘helped’ Frisk load the car to leave.

 

Frisk smiled up at him. “You should go to college with me!” they signed. “We could be roommates!”

 

Sans chuckled and shook his head. “nah kid, i gotta keep working here. gotta pay off pap’s car and all.”

 

“You should be a professor!”

 

“me, a teacher? way too much work.”

 

Frisk looked down, and their smile turned sad. “I’ll miss you, Sans,” they said vocally.

 

His own grin faltered for a second. “I’ll miss you too, kiddo. you’re one of my best friends.” He opened his arms, and they ran to him in a tackle-hug. “oof kid, you really have gotten bigger.”

 

“I’m an adult now!” they went back to signing. “So when i graduate…” they picked a broom out of the trunk and threw it at Sans. “i’m gonna come back and sweep you off your feet!” He stared at the broom, then back at Frisk, then the broom again. The human fidgeted nervously, cheeks turning redder, before snatching the implement away and tossing it back in the car. “Just kidding! I’m leaving now, bye!” They signed as they jumped into the car, taking off before the skeleton could stop them.

 

When Frisk came back that summer, Sans started to look at them differently. The one after that, they hung out together almost the whole time. The third year, Frisk asked sans on a date, and he said yes. On the fourth, Sans asked Frisk out on several dates. The fifth was Frisk’s last year, since they had had trouble in a few courses. The graduation party Toriel threw was spectacular, and every monster That Frisk had ever talked to was there to congratulate them and give gifts. They already had a job lined up as a monster/human ambassador, a job they had tackled in the past under adult supervision, but this time they were determined to make a difference. The party went late into the night. Frisk was outside when Sans found them.

 

“some party, huh kid?” He said, sitting on the porch next to them and handing them a glass of punch. “you’ve finally graduated. unless you think the world is gonna continue to  _ school  _ ya.” Frisk giggled, and Sans’s smile widened. “i, uh, haven’t given you a present yet. here.” He handed them a wal-mart bag, to which they raised a brow. “what, why should i wrap it if you’re just gonna open it anyway?” Frisk rolled their eyes, but they were smiling as they reached inside to pull out a card. A card that looked a lot less like a graduation card, and a lot more like a valentines day card, with hamburgers and french fries on it.

 

Meating you was one of the best things in my life

You hamburgled my heart

And now i only have fries for you

Will you be mine, valentine?

 

Frisk giggled, then started outright laughing. Sans loved their laugh. It had been like a light in the dark when they first fell underground, but now, compared with all the stars in the sky, it was brighter than a sun, than a supernova. Over the past few years, he had come to live for that laugh. Finally, Frisk calmed down enough to sign. “You gave me a valentines card on my graduation?!” they were still giggling.

 

“yup,” Sans merely grinned at them. “so, whaddya say?”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“isn’t it obvious? wanna be my datemate?”

 

“Yes!” They all but yelled, causing several head to turn and look outside just as Frisk tackled Sans.

  
  
  


They had been dating for three years before deciding to soulbond. They were going to have a wedding of sorts beforehand, because Toriel would throw a fit if they didn’t. It was going to be held at Asgore’s gardens, because Frisk had threatened to throw a fit if they didn’t. Sans was in Asgore’s bathroom, sweating up a storm. He was happy. So happy. Happier than he ever thought was even possible, just waiting for Papyrus to come get him. Sans and Frisk were going to walk down the aisle together, say their vows, and then the whole monster community would acknowledge their bond. They had already gotten paperwork filled out on the human side. He and Frisk had been planning this for moths, going back and forth over how they wanted everything to be, who was doing what, reassuring each other that it was going to be great. Sans was so happy. Frisk had had to reassure him over and over again that yes, they really wanted to do this, yes, they really loved him, yes, they were sure. They had been living together a year now, and while there had been speedbumps, everything was worked out with proper communication. He took a deep breath, let it out. Then a knock at the door. He stood up straight, smoothing out imaginary wrinkles in his suit, as his brother’s voice came through the door. “Sans! It’s time to-”

  
Sans woke up in his room. What. he looked out the window. He was in Snowdin. No. No no no  _ no no nO NO NONONO _


End file.
